GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
1 CHRONICLES 18:14-17
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14 So David reigned over all Israel. and he administered justice and equity to all his people. 15 Joab son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat son of Ahilud was recorder; 16 Zadok son of Ahitub and Ahimelech son of Abiathar were priests; Shavsha was secretary; 17 Benaiah son of Jehoiada was over the Kerethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were the chief officials in the service of the king.
The list of David’s officials includes the basics of a government:
The overall commander of the army, David’s nephew Joab.
The recorder (responsible for the history of the kingdom and actions of the king) was a man named Jehoshaphat (later of the name of a king of Judah).
Two priests, that is, chief priests: Zadok and Ahimelech. There is no evidence of a system involving two chief priests before David’s time. Were the duties such that a second man was required, or was one of the men so elderly that another was thought to be necessary, since the post was for life? This only leads to additional questions, since under the Law given to Moses, the high priest’s son would take over. Zadok had a son named Ahimaaz (2 Samuel 15:35), and Abiathar had at least one other son besides Ahimelech, named Jonathan (also in 2 Samuel 15:35).
The secretary was responsible for correspondence and in writing out the king’s orders.
There is no surprise in finding David’s sons as chief officials, since they would need to know how the governance of the kingdom worked.
But this brings us to the man, Benaiah. He was one of David’s mighty men, a man with special honor. David put him in charge of his personal bodyguard (2 Samuel 23:23). Here we learn that this bodyguard was made up of Kerethites and Pelethites. The Kerethites were men of Philistine birth. The Hebrew name Kerethites may come from the verb karath that means “to cut, cut down.” Were they executioners? Or were they simply skilled in using the sword? When David had been a captain in Saul’s army, he gathered many foreign mercenaries around himself, men who were personally loyal to him, David. The Kerethites were surely to be numbered with these mercenaries.
The word “Pelethite” means courier, and there is no reason to go looking for any other meaning. A government as well as an army needs communication, and a regular supply of trusted couriers was vital.
This was the basic organization of David’s government, still very much attached to the organization of his army. But we skipped over verse 14, the Chronicler’s assessment of David himself. David administered justice and equity to all. Justice means that the laws were carried out. Equity means that there was no favoritism in the way that justice was done, nor in the way that supplies and services were administered to the people. Jerusalem was no more or less important than the villages of Galilee. Hebron was no more or less important than Beersheba.
David’s record as a king was good, even great. His record as a repentant sinner is more of a role for us all to follow. When David’s big sins came (one is in Chronicles, the other is not), he confessed his sin, asked God for forgiveness, and did not despair about his faith or his righteousness.
David is not like Jesus as a perfect example. David is more like everyone’s great-grandfather. If we don’t know much about him, he’s just an okay guy in the past. But the more we get to know about him, the more we’re shocked by his sins, and the more we are pleased if he repented of those sins and was brought back to faith and godly living.
When Solomon was a little boy, David told him: “Do not set foot on the path of the wicked, or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn away from it and pass it by” (Proverbs 4:14-15). And also: “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6). All of the military skill, all of the good organization of the government, all of the stability of stone walls and posted guards would be for nothing without faith in the heart of the king. The people of the nation were God’s flock, but a wicked king could quickly lead most of them astray. How much more this is the case with a family! We bring our babies to be baptized. Perhaps some of us bring them to Sunday school or a Christian school to learn more. But we parents are either a blessing to their faith or a cross for them to bear. May God make none of us into crosses. It is a waste of a life to be a burden to everyone else on account of one’s own doubts and wickedness. Be a blessing to everyone around you, and see everyone as a blessing in turn. Give them the blessing of your lips and well as with your life, and they will pray more and more fervently, “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.”
May our heavenly Father look away from your sins, and count your faith in Jesus alone as righteousness. He loves his good people. He loves you.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
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Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota
God’s Word for You – 1 Chronicles 18:14-17 Be a blessing